Duty

Chapter 59 Every waking moment

Even knowing how vicious Balor could be, how close she was to the border, how long this war had already lasted, she had never imagined herself in the midst of battle. Now, as she looked down from the walled gates of the estate, her blood ran cold and she felt shivers running up her spine.

Fear.

She was afraid.

But she could not show it. She had an estate to defend.

By keeping a hail of arrows rain down on the enemy, they had managed to clear a path for three riders, one at a time. Whether they would reach their destination and secure aid remained to be seen. It was out of her hands now. The only thing she could do was stand strong and hold the estate as long as possible.

She gasped when arms locked around her waist and she was pulled away. Before she could react, she was pushed against a wall with someone shielding her as arrows flew past.

Her protector pulled away and sighed in relief. "You should keep a safe distance, my lady."

Vara let out a shaky breath and nodded at Lykander. "Thank you."

"You should rest, my lady," Lykander continued, "you have stood side by side with us for the past two days. Go inside. Eat something. Sleep. We will do what we can to keep the enemy at bay."

Vara shook her head stubbornly. Even if she was exhausted, she was not going to let others do all the work. "How could I rest, knowing you are all fighting here? I couldn't bear it." Besides, if there was news from Iason, then she wanted to be awake to hear it. She forced out a smile. "I'll be fine." She turned away from him and climbed back onto the wall where she was shielded by barricades but could still fire her arrows.

Even so, she knew it was only a matter of time. At some point they would run out of arrows.

The captain of the guard noticed her and approached her with a serious expression on his face. "My lady," he tried to reason with her, "I know by now it will be futile to ask you to seek cover inside, but I beg you, when we are no longer able to hold the gates, promise me you will bring yourself to safety. If not for yourself, them for my sake. Lord Iason will be devastated if anything were to happen to you. And what would I tell the king?"

"Drusus," Vara smiled at him, "I thank you for your concern, but I assure you, the king will know you are not to blame. As for my husband, I fear for his safety more than for my own. But I promise that should it come to that, I will try my best to stay alive."

Drusus sighed. It wasn't what he had wanted to hear, but he knew better than to expect more. He gave a tired nod. "At least let one of my men shield you if you insist on putting yourself at risk." He flinched and bowed his head. "My lady," he added as in afterthought.

Vara smiled kindly. "I don't insist on formalities, especially now, but I will concede if it puts your mind at ease."

The soldier sighed in relief. "Thank you, my lady."

Vara nodded and took a deep breath. "Let's defend our home to the bitter end."

...

Lord Izem and his heir had gathered in the study with Darius when one of the servants entered the room. He bowed deeply. "Beg your pardon, my lords, Your Majesty."

Lord Izem looked up annoyed. "What is it, man? We are in the middle of an important meeting."

The servant kept his eyes downcast. "Forgive me, my lord, for disturbing you, but a rider arrived. Boncini is under attack. They urgently need aid or they'll be overrun."

Next to his father, Mikos froze. He had ridden with men from Boncini. They were comrades.

On the far end of the room, Torcan had also flinched. His eyes filled with worry and he looked at Darius. If it were up to him, he'd ride out now.